SpaceX announced its Starship megarocket will attempt its first-ever orbital launch on Sept 28, a pivotal milestone in the development of the giant reusable launch vehicle that, if successful, will open a new chapter in commercial crewed deep-space exploration.
Core Summary NASA announced on September 18 a contract modification worth nearly $950 million with SpaceX, adding three additional Crew Dragon flights to the International Space Station. The supplemental award further reinforces SpaceX’s position as the core contractor within NASA’s commercial crew program and has triggered a fresh round of discussion about single-vendor dependence. Event Details According to CNBC, the contract modification, valued at approximately $950 million, is part of an extension of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program (CCP). The three newly added missions are intended to support ISS crew rotations and scientific research, with launch timing to be determined based on NASA’s overall mission schedule and station operational needs. ...
Spaceflight Now reported on September 13 that SpaceX completed the 700th launch of its Falcon rocket family in the early hours of the day from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida, sending the final three O3b mPOWER medium-Earth-orbit satellites for Luxembourg-based operator SES into orbit, formally closing out the multi-year medium-Earth-orbit satellite internet upgrade program. The Falcon family has crossed from maiden flight to 700 missions in just over a decade, averaging more than 60 launches per year and becoming the most frequently launched and most reusable rocket series in commercial spaceflight. The success not only cements SpaceX’s lead in the reusable launch and commercial launch services markets, but also gives SES a fully upgraded capability to deliver differentiated services to government, maritime, aviation and telecom operator customers around the world.
Core Summary The European Space Agency (ESA) and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) collaborative BepiColombo mission has successfully entered Mercury’s orbit after 8 years and traveling over 9 billion kilometers. This marks humanity’s first systematic scientific exploration of Mercury and represents a major breakthrough in deep space exploration technology. Event Details According to Ars Technica, the BepiColombo probe was launched in 2018 and used multiple gravity assists to gradually adjust its trajectory before finally reaching the innermost planet of our solar system. The mission consists of two orbiters: Europe’s Mercury Planetary Orbiter (MPO) and Japan’s Mercury Magnetospheric Orbiter (MMO), which will conduct one year of scientific observations of Mercury’s surface and magnetic environment respectively. ...
On September 2, 2026, astronomers announced the discovery of a mysterious decagon cloud structure at Saturn’s south pole. Confirmed through joint observations by NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope and James Webb Space Telescope, this finding challenges conventional understanding of gas giant atmospheric dynamics.
Core Summary According to Fox News, President Trump will honor the Artemis II mission astronauts in the coming days, who just completed the farthest crewed spaceflight from Earth in human history. This mission marks an important milestone in NASA’s return-to-the-Moon program, laying the foundation for future crewed lunar missions. Event Details The Artemis II mission is a key component of NASA’s Artemis program, aimed at returning humans to the Moon. The mission’s astronauts set a new record for the farthest distance humans have traveled from Earth, demonstrating deep space exploration capabilities. ...
Core Summary NASA officially announced on August 19 that it has abandoned its rescue plan for the Swift space telescope. Launched in 2004, the telescope has operated well beyond its designed two-year lifespan for over 21 years. During its mission, Swift detected more than 2,000 gamma-ray bursts, making significant contributions to astronomical research. Event Overview According to the Associated Press, the Swift telescope has experienced multiple system failures in recent years, including gyroscope problems and communication equipment degradation. NASA engineers attempted remote repairs but ultimately determined the telescope could not be restored to normal operation. ...
Core Summary On August 12, 2026, a spectacular total solar eclipse will traverse the Arctic Circle, Greenland, Iceland, Spain, and other regions, attracting millions of astronomy enthusiasts and scientists worldwide. With just two days remaining until totality, observation preparations in various locations have entered their final sprint. Event Details According to Space.com, this total solar eclipse’s path begins at the North Pole, crosses the Atlantic Ocean, traverses Iceland and much of Spain, and finally extends to North Africa. This is one of the most anticipated astronomical events since the 2017 “Great American Eclipse.” ...
An international research team has captured unprecedented high-resolution images of the Sun’s surface using next-generation solar telescopes, providing the first clear observation of plasma mixing processes driven by Kelvin-Helmholtz instabilities in the solar atmosphere. This discovery offers new physical mechanisms for understanding solar activity cycles and space weather forecasting.
SpaceX’s Starship completed its 13th test flight, achieving what the company called the ‘softest splashdown ever,’ marking a major breakthrough in reusable rocket technology.